You are not Alone
by Angelina Moonlight
Summary: [New]Chapter 7 Up! If Angel gets a strange artefact from her father; she and Jim will need all their courage to prevent it from falling into the wrong hands.
1. When Girl met Boy

**Authors note: **I hope you will enjoy reading my fanfic. And I would be very happy if you gave some comments or remarks on it. :D  
And please remember that I don't own _any_ of the characters from _Treasure Planet_. They are all © Disney. Only the character Angelina Moonlight (Angel) is © by me. (Angel)

**When Girl met Boy**

It was on a random Saturday that I saw him for the first time. My father and I went to a place owned by a dear friend of his, called the "Benbow Inn". He had often visited the place on his own, but now he wanted me to meet his friend and her son. So he took me to the Inn and ordered a meal for us.  
When I saw him, I immediately knew by the look of his eyes that he had gone through a lot. My father told me that Mrs. Hawkins' son worked in the Inn for a few days during holiday because the poor woman was in desperate need of help. The boy nodded towards our table and gave me a friendly smile.  
For some reason I found myself interested in him. There was something in him I felt a connection with, but I couldn't describe what it was. I noticed that he was somewhat confused about this feelings, too.  
"Angelina, are you listening to me?"  
I looked up. My father clearly had seen that I didn't pay attention to him at all. I felt a slight of guild. After all; he had also taken me to the Inn to spend some quality time together. I knew this wouldn't work if I didn't cleared my head.  
"May I please be excused for a moment?", I asked.  
My father sighed. After seventeen years he was very familiar with my dreamy look and by now he knew that I needed to be alone in these moments.  
"Very well then, off you go", he said.  
I gave him a short kiss on his cheek and took my notebook. Outside there was a bench I could sit on. From the first word I wrote down I was drawn into my own thoughts. When I started to write, nothing in the world could keep me from it. I forgot that there were other people on the planet too and got lost in my own little mind.  
So it happened that he stood there beside me and I didn't even noticed him at all. He looked fascinated to my little figure, just sitting there, not moving an inch, writing down words non-stop.  
"Are you always so dreamy like this?", he finally said.  
I jumped up and let out an quiet scream.  
"Don't you scare me like that!"  
My notebook had fallen on the ground and he picked it up for me. When he gave it back, he looked at me with a worried expression on his face.  
"I'm sorry", he said, "Are you alright?"  
I just couldn't stay mad at him and had to smile.  
"I'm fine."  
We both sat down on the bench. I felt a little uncomfortable, but excited at the same time. I was really curious about him and wanted to know more.  
"I'm Jim Hawkins", he introduced himself.  
"I'm Angelina Moonlight, but all my friends call me Angel. At least they would, if I had any real friends."  
Jim lifted his legs and put his arms around them.  
"What do you mean?", he asked.  
I thought about my times at school. Why was I even telling him this? Although it could be nice to talk about it with somebody.  
"Well", I said, "All those girls at school talk about the same things all the time. It's always about their boyfriends or how well they look. The same mindless chat, every break again. Sometimes they even say I am weird, just because I wear different clothes and don't act the way they do."  
Jim really was surprised. He looked into my eyes as if he found something in me that he also found in himself.  
"I know exactly what you mean. My so called 'friends' treat me the same and my grades suffered from it. I was crushed to see my mother so disappointed, while she knew I was bright enough."  
I couldn't believe what I just heard. Jim seemed like a really popular boy to me, but he wasn't. He clearly understood what I had gone through. There was a silence between us and we both thought how amazing this was.  
"He talks about you a lot", Jim finally said.  
I was confused by his sudden words.  
"Who does?", I asked.  
"Your father. He's a really nice man."  
"Oh yes, he is. It's a shame he has to go on business trips so often though. I wish he could stay longer with me. Speaking of which; I have to be heading beck. He's waiting for me."  
Jim smiled. He had such a wonderful smile!  
"It was nice meeting you", he said.  
I nodded. "Same here. I hope to see you around."  
I picked up my notebook and walked towards the Inn. I could just see how Jim was staring to the stars, lost in his own thoughts. I wondered what he was thinking.  
Back at the dinner table I couldn't put it out of my head. I knew there was something, but it remained a mystery to me what it was.

After we had finished our meals, my dad suddenly had to go away for some business. Luckily, Mrs. Hawkins agreed to keep an eye on me. And so I had to stay at the Benbow Inn. Because I didn't want to be a burden for her, I helped Mrs. Hawkins clearing the tables and washing the dishes. I can't remember when, but at some point Jim walked in. I was just busy to put all the plates back into the closet.  
"Shall I help you with that?", he asked.  
I looked confused and for a moment I couldn't say anything.  
"Oh…yes please", I said, relieved that I was still able to speak some words.  
When he stood right next to me I felt ashamed that my hair was such a mess and my clothes were all wet. But he seemed perfectly ok with this and smiled at me.  
"Where's your father?", he asked, "I haven't seen him around here anymore."  
"Oh no", I replied, "He had to leave. I don't know when he will be back though."  
"And he left you with my mother and me?"  
I picked up another plate and lowered my eyes.  
"Yes he did. He has good faith in your mother, you know. I'm so sorry if my presence is inconvenient, I really didn't mean to…"  
Softly he pressed his finger against my lips.  
"Don't be sorry", he said, "I like having you around here."  
I believe that was the first time a boy ever made me blush. I turned my head away, to prevent him from seeing my red cheeks.  
"Do you like to read books?", I said surprised, pointing on the book he had taken with him.  
"Oh…yes. I used to read books with pirate story's in it. Now I also like to read other ones."  
I took the book in my hand and leaf through it. I was filled with delight to know someone else read these adventure story's too.  
"You know, I love books!"  
Jim looked up from his work and came standing behind me.  
"Really?", he said.  
I nodded. "Oh yes! I want to become a writer myself too someday."  
Shortly after that we came in a big discussion, both thrilled to know we liked the same genre. We almost forgot to get on with our work.  
At that moment Mrs. Hawkins came into the kitchen with some new plates for us to wash.  
"Ah," she said, "So you have met my son Jim?"  
She gave him a quick wink. "Well, I have to take some new orders. Will you two manage it around here?"  
"Sure we will!", we both said and Mrs. Hawkins took off.  
I felt that there was a tension between Jim and me, and I'm pretty sure he felt it too. We had so much in common!

When all the tables were clean, the dishes done and everything stood on the place it was supposed to be, I left the kitchen to find my room. I had a wonderful soft bed and cuddled against my pillow. I took a pen and picked up my notebook. I felt a real urge to write something down. It was about my mother.  
At eleven O'clock I decided that it was time to go to sleep. For a moment I thought how nice it was from Mrs. Hawkins that I could stay with her and Jim, before I closed my eyes. The dream I had was about my mother, just like every night. How we hugged and played games…I was so happy. Until I saw that horrible car again. I screamed as I watched my mother die. I reached with my hand for her, but she was too far away.  
The next thing I can remember, was Jim taking me into his arms. Apparently his room was next to mine, so he must have heard me crying. I felt his warm body against mine and crawled closer to him. He stroke me gently over my hair and held me tightly into his arms. Now I knew he was with me it gave me great comfort. Eventually I let my head rest against his chest and closed my eyes again.


	2. Goodbye may seem forever

**Goodbye may seem forever**

The next morning I woke up in a strange bed in an environment I was not familiar with. Then I remembered were I was – and also what had happened last night. I felt ashamed. What the hell was I thinking? I had only met the boy for one day! One single day!  
Still…there was something…a certain attraction that could not prevent me from liking him. He had been so sweet with me. And I couldn't deny that I had liked it.  
My daydreaming was disturbed by the sound of my door opening. It was Jim. He looked at me with worry in his eyes.  
"How are you?", he asked.  
"I'm fine", I replied, "I want to thank you for last night. I really could use a shoulder to cry on."  
He came sitting next to me on the bed. Again we sat close to each other, but I didn't mind. It was like we had become really good friends, and, the more I thought about it, the more I knew that was true.  
"No problem", he said, "Do you want to talk about it?"  
For a moment I hesitated. Should I tell him? I knew I could trust Jim, but I wasn't sure if I wanted him to know. On the other hand, I felt that I owed him an explanation.  
"It was my mother. She…she died in a car crash while I was with her. We tried to save her…but it was too late."  
We looked right into each others eyes. Jim had beautiful blue eyes. For the first time I noticed that there was also darkness in them. They told me that he cared. He really cared about me.  
The next moment I felt his arms around my body. We hugged. He gave me such a safe feeling, knowing that everything was going to be alright. I didn't really knew what to do with these sudden emotions. I had always been able to control them, but now I didn't seem to be able to control anything.  
He smiled at me. Oh God! Always that wonderful smile! It didn't made things any easier for me. I just couldn't understand why I trusted this boy while I had only met him for one day. Normally I wouldn't have told about my mother to anyone, especially not to a guy I hardly knew.  
"Why are you so irritating sweet?", I asked him.  
Jim grinned. "I don't know…it's weird. I don't usually sneak into someone's bedroom in the middle of night to hold her into my arms."  
I laughed and hugged him again. "Well I don't usually trust a guy so easily and tell him all this stuff about my past."  
He stroke with his hand through my short blonde hair.  
"You really trust me?", he said.  
"Yes, I trust you"  
It was hard to believe that two people could become so close in such a short time as we had. Though we were aware of this fact, Jim and I didn't really care. Time had become unimportant to us, it were only the moments that counted.  
Jim stood up from the bed and threw a pillow at me.  
"Now get dressed", he laughed, "Breakfast is served."  
I took the pillow out of my face and grinned. "I'll get you! Just wait!"

When I came downstairs there was a surprise waiting for me. There was indeed a breakfast, but at the table I also saw my father. Apparently the business was over. I hadn't expect him to be back so soon, but was glad to see him nevertheless. I ran towards him and he happily embraced me.  
Though he seemed happy that he was with me again, there was something about the look on his face that worried me. His eyes were tired and he acted very nervous.  
"Did Jim and Mrs. Hawkins took good care of you?", he asked.  
I laughed and gave Jim a short wink. "Yes they did. Don't you worry about that."  
My father was content with my answer and we all sat down to enjoy the delightful breakfast Mrs. Hawkins had made for us.  
While everyone was chatting and eating, I was observing my father very closely and he gave me the impression that he wanted to leave as soon as possible. I couldn't understand why, nor was I very thrilled about it.  
"You have made an delicious breakfast, Sarah", I heard him saying.  
"It was nothing", she laughed, "But thank you for the compliment."  
From the corner of my eye I watched towards Jim. I gave him a signal to follow me upstairs. I knew there was something wrong. Really, really wrong.

"What's the matter?", Jim asked when we got safely on the first floor, without being called back. I suddenly realised that this would also be goodbye for us. That idea didn't appeal to me at all.  
"There's something strange about my father", I said, "He wants to leave."  
"Are you sure? That means…"  
I nodded. "I'm positive. I've known him all my life. There's definitely something not ok. But…", I slowly continued, "It also means we have to say goodbye."  
I could hardly hold back my tears. I tried to wipe them away with my hands, but it wasn't enough.  
"Will…will I ever see you again?", I stuttered.  
Jim raised my chin up with his finger so we were face to face.  
"I know we will", he said, "You are not alone."  
I stopped crying and hugged him one last time. He took my hand into his and gave me a kiss on my cheek.  
"It's not a coincidence that out of all girls I meet one called Angel", he whispered in my ear. When I opened my hand again I saw a little necklace in it with a pendant in the shape of an Guardian Angel. I remembered that he told me that he believed that Angles always protect you, no matter were you are.  
I stroke with my hand on his cheek.  
"Thank you so much", I said and I managed to give him a bright smile through my tears, "I will never forget you."  
Before we could say anything else I was pulled away by my sleeve. My father took me down the stairs as fast as he could. I looked back to Jim once. Then I ran with my dad. He only told me that we had to be away as far as we could and as fast as we could. At that moment I thought I would never see the Benbow Inn or Jim again.


	3. Hope never dies

**Hope never dies**

I couldn't believe she was gone. Or actually I just didn't _want_ to believe it.  
Her father had just pulled her out of my life, without even saying if they'll ever come back. Her father…how badly had I wanted to tell her this morning about my own father! But I just couldn't, knowing that she would have been so worried about me while she had her own problems to deal with.  
The only comfort I had was the little necklace I had given her. At least Angel would have some protection. Tears came into my eyes as I thought about her. I was afraid I had lost my best and only friend in the world. No girl had ever been able to understand me, but she did. Her cheerful smile and twinkling eyes remained in my heart. I remembered her writing down words in her notebook, focused only on the story she was telling. I also remembered the look on her face as she wrote: completely happy, with no worries at all.  
I walked down the stairs to find my mother. She was behind the bar, busy to count the money. I knew she didn't wanted to be disturbed when she counted the money, but I just had to ask it to her. I just had to know.  
"Mom?", I began.  
She looked up. I noticed that she was nervous, just like Angel's father had been this morning. Had they talked? I didn't know.  
"Yes?", she said.  
"Do you think they'll come back?"  
She sighed. My mother clearly wasn't in the mood for this.  
"No Jim, I'm afraid not."  
I lowered my eyes. To be honest I had already expect this answer. Life just isn't fair. Not even my own mother could understand me like Angel could.  
She looked at me with confusion.  
"Why do you care?", she said, "You've only met the girl one day ago and you didn't seem like you would miss her father much. Besides…"  
"I gave her the Angel necklace, mom!", I interrupted.  
My mother opened her mouth with astonishment.  
"The one your father left for you?"  
I nodded. "Do you know any other Angel necklace?"  
She shook her head in disbelief. She knew that thing was saint to me, so it had to be really someone special if I had given it to her. And she _was_ someone special, I thought, as I ran outside.  
At this point there was only one thing that could clear my head and that I wanted to do: Solar Surfing. I would feel free up in the air and maybe it could help me understand why this had happened. It was all so strange. One moment I had a wonderful friend, and the next she was taken away from me.

I flew through the air at my top speed. With the help of my sail I got higher and higher. This was it; this was the moment. With one step of my foot I made the sail disappear. I was so upset about Angel leaving that I made one perfect looping after another. It all came out with no trouble at all.  
For some reason my solar-surfing was always better when I was angry or upset.  
When I was all the way down I let the sail come out again. I passed my obstacles with a certain control and screamed out loud of happiness. It gave me such a great feeling to be up in the sky; there I was free.  
I went for a second round of loopings and got further and further away from the Benbow Inn. I had no plans of returning home soon, although I knew my mother wouldn't be happy about it.  
I gave the surfer more speed, in order to be able to make some spinnings afterwards. With my hands on the metal bar of the sail I felt everything and nothing at the same time. I think I was the same with Solar-Surfing as Angel was with writing: completely happy when I did it.

"James Pleiades Hawkins! How many times do I have to tell you?"  
I sighed. Typical for my mother to give me the 'responsible-for-your-actions-speech' while I was old enough to take care of myself.  
"Mom", I said, "I'm seventeen now. I'm not doing anything stupid. Just losing some energy, clearing my head."  
She looked at me in a way she was listening to something she had already heard before, but didn't believe anymore. She was pretty mad at me, and a part of me did understand her, but I had given up the Surfing in restricted areas since I was fifteen, so there was nothing to worry about.  
"What if you got hurt?", she sneered back.  
I put my hand on my mothers shoulder and smiled at her.  
"That won't happen", I assured her, "I've had years of practice."  
She turned around and looked through the window.  
"You're exactly like your father! Irresponsible and dangerous."  
I froze. Immediately memories of the past float through my head. Tears came into my eyes as I thought about the endless trying, the endless scream for love that I never got. I didn't want to turn out like my father.  
My mother knew she had hit me on my weak spot, and regretted her words the minute she had spoken them.  
"Jim, I…"  
She looked around, but I was already gone. I ran to my room and slammed with the door. I could not believe she said that. All those years I had longed for my father to come back, but he never came. Life hadn't been easy without him, but I somehow had been able to mange it on my own.  
I sat on my bed with my knees up and my pillow tightly in my hands. As I looked to the stars out my window I thought about Angel.  
"Will you come back or are you just gonna leave me like he did?", I whispered.  
It gave me some comfort to think that she could be watching the same stars as I did now. In that way we were still together.  
From then on I sat there every night, hoping that she would come back.  
But she didn't came. Months flew by without hearing anything from her.  
As my worry grew by the day, my mother seemed more relaxed when there was  
no news from Angel or her father. I wondered why, but I didn't wanted to ask her.  
With time my hope faded, but it hadn't left me yet. I still believed that there would come a day when we would be together again.


	4. Angel's Return

**Authors note:** _to take away some confusment you may have about this and the previous chapter; it's told from Jim's point of view now. I might be switching between them some more often.

* * *

_

**Angel's Return**

On a stormy night my wish finally had come true.  
It was already 1 am when my mother heard somebody knocking on the door.  
"Who could be calling on us in this late hour?", she thought.  
Shivering from the sudden cold she put on her morning robe. I saw the light in her room and decided to take a look.  
She opened the door while warming herself, still not completely awake. I couldn't see who was there, but my mother immediately slapped her hands against her mouth the minute she saw the person. She looked as if she had seen a ghost.  
I wondered what it could be that made her so upset. Apart from some vague movements of the person standing in front of her I couldn't see a thing, nor could I hear a word from what they were saying. They talked and my mother stepped aside to make some more room.  
Then I saw her, carried by a man I didn't knew. My heart jumped over by the look of her little figure.  
"Angel", I whispered.  
She shivered and coughed. Her clothes were soaked and her hair was a mess. My mother pointed towards the room next to mine and the poor thing was laid on her previous bed.  
Angel tossed and turned as my mother took out her shoes and clothes. She asked me for one of my old pyjama's and put it on by the little girl. Like any other mother would do with an ill child she tugged her in warm and gave her a short kiss on the forehead.  
After she was done; my mother and the stranger went downstairs.  
She thanked him and offered one of the rooms to sleep in, but he insisted to go because they were waiting for him at home.  
I sneaked into Angel's room, while my mother was calling the doctor. I held her cold hand into mine and sat by her bed.  
"What happened?", I cried, as I stroke with my hand on her cheek.  
She just laid there and I felt so powerless to see her struggling. Her coughing increased, which really worried me. How could she have become so ill?

When the doctor came he send me away to examine her.  
I walked in circles around the room, unable to sit down.  
"Don't worry so much", my mother said, "The doctor will take good care of her."  
I nodded, but to be honest I wasn't so sure about that. It seemed to take forever before the door was opened again.  
I ran towards the doctor.  
"And? What's wrong?", I asked impatiently.  
He put down his bag and gave my mother some prescriptions.  
"The girl cached a serious cold", he said, "She has pneumonia. And you have to make sure she eats good as well. Undernourished as she is I'd say she hasn't seen food for at least three days."  
I was shocked. Something really awful must have happened to her, I thought, or else she wouldn't be doing this to herself.  
"Will she be alright?", I asked.  
The doctor smiled. "Sure she will", he said, "This sort of thing is easy to treat at home nowadays. Just let her take the medication and I'll come to check upon her once a week."  
My mother thanked him and showed the way out.  
I sighed with relief. Everything was going to be alright. Still my heart ached to see Angel in such pain. Suddenly I remembered the necklace I had given her. I noticed that it hang around her neck, while she held the Guardian Angel pendant tightly in her left hand. She breathed quietly and peaceful.  
"And now let us catch some sleep as well", my mother said. She send me to my bed and went herself too.

The next few days I went strait to Angel's room when I got home. I sat by her and she was always happy to see me, I saw it in her. She lifted her head and smiled at me when I entered.  
My mother and me both made sure that she took her medication and she seemed to improve quickly. Though medical care in our time was far better then it used to be, Angel was still very ill. She hardly spoke a word, and if she did, it usually was to me.  
At first she had not wanted to eat, but I sat with her patiently to push her gently to do so. She was just as stubborn as I can be at times.  
"Come on, you really must eat", I said.  
She coughed and looked at me with dull eyes.  
"But I can't, I'm not hungry", she replied weakly.  
Her words made me more and more worried. The twinkling in her eyes had disappeared, which was not a good sign. She seemed to have lost all her will to live and I was desperate to get it back.  
"Please tell me what's wrong", I cried, "I know there is something you are not telling me! I can see it!"  
She sighed. I saw tears coming into her eyes. Good, I thought, finally she's showing some emotion. Apparently Angel had been pressing away her memories from the past months. That had to come out sometime.  
"I…I saw them pushing", she stuttered, "Horrible…he tried to escape. Kicking…so much on the kicking and the beating…they didn't stop. I wasn't able save him…"  
Then she couldn't hold back her tears anymore. It all came out. I climbed on the bed and sat beside her. I held her into my arms and slowly rocked her back and forth.  
"It's alright, it's alright. Oh, my dear Angel, what in the world has happened?"  
I wiped away some tears from her eyes and she began to calm down a bit.  
"My father", she whispered, finally facing the truth, "Is dead."  
I closed my mouth in astonishment. I realised that she had no one anymore. Angel crawled further into my arms and I closed them around her.  
I wanted to tell her how sorry I was, but for some reason I couldn't find the words for it. I saw by the look in her eyes that she felt comfort in my embrace.  
The only thing I wished was to show Angel that she was not alone; the she had me.  
"Do you want to tell me about it?", I asked.  
She hesitated. It had been quite some time since we had seen each other and I could imagine that she must have gone through a lot.  
"Yes…", she replied, "I think I'm ready for it."  
I gave her a tissue to blow her nose. Her eyes were all red from the crying.  
"You are not alone, Angel", I told her, "I will always be there for you."


	5. A Necklace and Three Artefacts

**Authors Note: **Please keep in mind that Angel is telling this to Jim, that's why I italicized all the words that are her memories. (that's almost everything:P) I hope you will enjoy this new chapter!

**A necklace and three artefacts**

_Right after we had left you and your mother behind, my father and I took our carriage. I couldn't speak a word the whole journey. We just sat there in silence, moved forward by my dad's odd pet.  
__I don't know how far we've travelled. I didn't really care. It seemed like an endless road to me, until suddenly we stopped.  
__It was a big house and I remembered seeing it on a picture once, shown by my father. It was his 'workplace'. I had never been there before. He always told me that his projects were top secret.  
__It was already dark outside when we entered the building. Inside, my father immediately ran towards an painting. He shove it aside and revealed a safe. Curious as I am I wanted to know what was in there. Impatiently I watched my dad opening it.  
__In his hand he held three artefacts: a little anchor, a heart and a cross. All the same size. I recognised them as the symbols for hope, faith and love.  
__My mother had believed in them and when she died I inherited her necklace with the three things on it. I believed in them as well, but I wondered why they were so important. They looked normal to me. Had we driven all that way just to get three little pendants?  
__At that moment my father picked another thing from the safe. It had the form of an circle and there were three symbols cut out of it. The same symbols as the artefacts. They would fit right in it.  
_"_What is it?", I asked.  
__My father looked serious and worried.  
_"_This…", he replied, "Is a very powerful stone. With those artefacts in it any human can have enormous powers at his disposal. Many people are after it and are willing to do anything to get it into their hands. The artefacts alone are already incredibly valuable, but together…"  
__He took a short pause to put all the things in a bag. He looked at me shortly.  
_"…_Let just say this must not fall into the wrong hands", he continued.  
__I nodded. It was very clear to me. Apparently my father had been planning this for moths. Our house was sold and he told me that he had bought a new one in a place I had never heard about before. But that was exactly what my father wanted. With a little luck we could start a whole new life without being chased by freaky people.  
__At that point I already missed you, because we could never return to our previous lives. We had to leave everything behind.  
__With our bags packed an the artefacts safely with us, my father and I closed the door. We set off, hoping that everything would turn out fine._

_For a few months everything _did_ turn out fine for us. The house was nice, the garden beautiful and we were quite happy together. Still I was sad.  
__I had no one to talk with, no one who cared. School wasn't interesting to me. I longed for your space adventures and wished I could go on such a trip with you.  
__But besides that part, we were doing alright.  
__My father was sweet to me, like he had always been. He was relieved that it had turned out this way, which made him a lot more easy to handle.  
__I guess he thought those men who wanted the necklace and the artefacts would never find us. As the months flew by I started to become more relaxed as well.  
__But none of that was true. They had tracked us down to our new home and were determent to get what they wanted.  
__It was a quiet day when my father and I sat in the garden. Everyone could enter our garden, even without permission. Now I look back on it, I realise that we should have been more careful. But at that time we never even thought for one second that hose people would suddenly ran into our backyard.  
__My father dragged me into the house and closed the door.  
_"_That won't hold them for long", he sighed bitterly.  
__Quickly he opened the secret box with the artefacts and gave one to me.  
_"_Here…", he said, "It comes with great danger, but at least _they_ will not get it. I am sorry I involved you in this."  
__My father gave me a short kiss on my forehead and put a note in my hand.  
_"_Go to that address…go to Sarah…if anything happens."  
_"_I love you dad", I whispered.  
_"_I love you too, Honey", he said, "You're gonna make it through this. You have a gift. Only you can do it now. You think you can't, but I know you can. The artefact will help you find your power…"  
__I didn't understand what he meant. I wasn't important. The only thing that was important was my father. I saw in his eyes that this was goodbye. I couldn't hold back my tears and hugged him.  
__We heard the door crack. They would soon come in. My father released himself from my embrace and took me by my shoulders.  
_"_Hide…don't let them find you! Can you promise me that?"  
__I looked through my tears into his eyes.  
_"_I…I promise"  
__My father smiled. "Good. Now go! Quickly!", he said.  
__His arms pushed me away from him and I ran to my secret hide-out in the house.  
__From there I could see everything happening: the breaking of the door, the creatures coming in, the beating and the kicking on my dad…  
__At that moment I just wanted to protect my father and ran to him, but I wasn't able to do anything. I had to stay hidden, or they would find me. I made a promise…and I didn't want to break it, for my father.  
__One of the creatures picked up the other artefacts and the necklace. They looked at it shortly and noticed that one of them was missing.  
_"_The girl must have it!", yelled the biggest, who was probably the leader.  
__I closed my hand around the Guarding Angel. _Please don't let them find me_, I prayed.  
__Luckily they left, thinking that I was already gone. I guess they were out looking for the last artefact, which I had in my pocket.  
__I waited a couple of minutes before I found the courage to leave my hide-out. I ran towards my dad, to see if I could still safe him. When I got there, it was to late. He just laid there motionless on the floor.  
__I wiped away my tears and ran through the door. _He would have wanted me to escape_, I thought. I looked everywhere around me, because I was still afraid that I might be followed. When I was convinced that the cost was clear, I dared to ran towards the woods._

_I had absolutely no idea were I was going. Rain came down on my hair and I sneezed. The wind was so cold that it made me shiver. I had left the house without food or money. Very stupid indeed, and now I had to pay for my foolishness.  
__With no money I had no place to sleep, so I improvised. Under a bridge or somewhere else; I didn't really care. I had nothing left to fight for. I even wished to die that night, so I could be with my mom and dad again.  
__When I put my hand in my pocket, I felt the artefact and the note. I had forgotten all about it. I ironed the paper and saw my dad's handwriting: fluently, with curls on the end of each word. He always did that.  
__The address was still very clear, even though it was touched by the rain.  
_Benbow Inn_. There it was, right in front of my nose on the paper: _Benbow Inn  
_I didn't know what to do with it, because I had not even a clue were I was _now_. Thinking I would never find the way, I put the note back in my pocket.  
__I don't know for how long I've walked in the rain. Three days? A week? I can't remember it. My coughing increased, but I refused to do something about it.  
__Hunger came over me and eventually I passed out. That's the last thing I can remember…_

Jim stared at me, like he could not believe what he had just heard. I couldn't blame him; I hardly believed it myself. It was such an amazing story and I was worn out by telling it. I let my head fell back into the pillow and closed my eyes for a moment.  
When I opened them again, Jim was still sitting there. His face was sweet and worried as always.  
I smiled. "Please ask me, I know you want to."  
He grinned. "You know me to well", he said.  
I just had to laugh. The dramatic look on his face was too much for me not to do so.  
"Alright", Jim continued, when I had calmed down a bit, "Do you still have the artefact? Which one was it?"  
I went with my hand under the pillow and brought out the pendant.  
"The heart", I replied, and showed him the little artefact in the palm of my hand.  
We both thought that they sure made a lot of trouble over such a little thing.  
I yawned and placed it on the nightstand. Jim gave me a kiss on my forehead and left the room. I was so exhausted that I had no trouble getting to sleep. With a content smile on my face I closed my eyes.


	6. Everyone has Secrets

**Autors Note: **_I want to thank my reviewers. I love to get them! I also write this story for myself, but in the endI mostly do it for others to read and (hopefully) to like. I hope you will enjoy the new chapter:D _

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**Everyone has Secrets**

The next morning I felt quite well. Well enough even, to get out of bed. I looked down to my body and for the first time I noticed how much weight I had lost. Sure, I've always been a fragile and slim girl, but this was different. Worse. Not natural.  
It scared me and I had to look in the mirror for a while before I got used to my new self. I had to tighten the belt round my pants when I put them on and the deep red shirt - the only one I had left - went over my head easily.  
With a content smile I turned around, watching myself from every angle.  
"That'll do", I muttered.  
The Guardian Angel was lighten up by the sun, which shin through my window. I gave it a smile. I was absolutely certain that in fact it was the necklace that had brought Jim and me back together.

Downstairs I saw Jim looking furious at his mother. I had never seen him so upset before. He gestured wildly with his hands and his whole body was tense.  
"You can't just turn your back on her like that!", he yelled, "She has no one left!  
Especially in times like this it's very important for us to…"  
"Jim, if I may?", Mrs. Hawkins interrupted, "We're not leaving her all by herself."  
"We're not?"  
Jim clearly was surprised by this answer. He had not expect his mother to give in so easily, but was still happy with it.  
"No", she replied, "Angel is staying here. We only need to find her a different room. The one she has now is supposed to be for guests."  
They both turned their heads towards the door where I was standing. Jim looked me straight into my eyes. I knew what he wanted to say. I slowly nodded to give him my approval. That was all he needed to know.  
"We can put a second bed in _my_ room", he said, with a slight of hesitation, "It's big enough for the two of us."  
Mrs. Hawkins gave it a deep thought. She looked from me to Jim and back to me.  
A sigh left her mouth. Sarah knew she could never keep us apart. It was the weirdest thing; I could actually see her thinking: _whatever am I going to do with these two?  
_In the end, she never really had a choice. All the other rooms were occupied by guests, so she had to give in.  
Luckily, there was a spare bed underneath Jim's and for the first time I really got a good impression of his room. It was indeed big, but still comfy at the same time. There were all kinds of posters hanging on his walls, mainly wit space pictures on it.  
I sat down at his desk and watched some of the papers on it, until my attention was drawn to a bright blue notebook. I still had my own red one and this looked just like it. Only I guessed that Jim didn't used it to write stories down. No, it was something different to him, but still very important.

After Jim had made me a warm bed, he left the room to help his mother in the kitchen. I still gazed at the blue notebook on his desk. I knew it was wrong of me to look into his personal belongings without his permission, but I was so curious that I could hardly control myself.  
Finally I walked over to the desk and opened the notebook. I struggled hard with my conscience, but in the end I never was a fair fight. What I saw made my heart jump over. It was about his father. Jim wrote about his father! As I leaf through it, more and more pages revealed to me what Jim felt.  
_It's so wrong of me_, I thought, _I shouldn't be reading this_. Still I couldn't put the notebook away and let my eyes read the first page. I was about halfway through when Jim suddenly closed it. I looked at him and saw great anger. I had never seen him so mad at me before. The fury in his eyes frightened me.  
"I tell you almost anything", he said, "But there are some things that I don't even want _you_ to see. This notebook is one of them."  
"I'm so sorry", I stuttered, "I should never have looked. It was wrong of me and I know that. I understand…your anger…"  
"Indeed you shouldn't have looked! You only need to ask me if you want to know something, silly girl!"  
Slowly I saw Jims face turn back into it's usual, sweet self. Although he smiled at me again, I knew I had lost some of his trust. And that is a hard thing to gain, especially from a boy like Jim. He was a far more complicated character then I had thought he would be. That is father left had made much more of an impact on him then anyone could ever imagine. I wanted to talk with him about it, but now was not the time, nor the place for such an conversation. I knew that Jim would tell me about his past when he was ready. That could never take long, assuming that he had been pushing away those feelings for years.  
What I really was wondering, is how he had been able to conceal it. To be honest, even I would never have known about it if it wasn't for that notebook. Once again it was very clear to me: everyone has secrets.

We both laid on Jim's bed, gazing at the stars shining through the window.  
"You know", he said, "All my life I've been waiting for him…hoping that someday he would come back to tell me he loved me, that he cared. But he never came. Words such as love and compassion became lies to me for such a long time…"  
He turned his head towards me and paused for a moment, looking me into the eyes in silence. Then, as he continued, he gave whisper to his voice. A voice so softly now that only I could hear it.  
"…But you gave them back their meaning."  
I smiled. With pain in my heart I thought about my own father. He had always been good to me, just like my mother. Even when she died, my dad had still managed to keep me going. Hope didn't seem to leave him. The years I had spend with him remained in my memories, never to be lost or forgotten.  
"Maybe", I said, "Your father wasn't ready for a child. Some are just not meant to be good parents. But that doesn't mean he never loved you."  
Jim sighed. For him it made no difference, he still had no one to hold on to.  
I crawled further into his arms and we just laid there, not speaking at all, knowing that being together was enough and exactly what we both wanted.  
After a while we decided to go to sleep. I had taken the artefact with me to the new room and now it laid under my pillow. I don't know why, it just felt right. With my head full of questions I closed my eyes.  
The most odd dream came over me. It didn't made any sense, until I saw both my parents. My heart filled with grief to see them. _Take me with you_, I cried. But before they could say anything, they disappeared. The memories I had came float over me. I wanted to forget it, to forget all. Nothing could be worse then this pain.  
Abruptly I woke up, holding the artefact tightly in my hand. It was warm...it glowed.


	7. Open up, Boy, Open up

**Authors Note: **_I'm really sorry it took me so long to update, but here it finally is: chapter number 7. I absolutely enjoyed writing it. I hope you will enjoy reading it, too. And because you had to wait so long; I have written a very special scene. Come on, you didn't really think I would write this story without them kissing, now did you? ;) _

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**Open up, Boy, Open up**

Angel's loud cry had woke me up. On the other side of the room I saw her little figure, sitting straight up in her bed. She gazed at something in her hand, but it was to dark to see what it was. Still kinda stagger from sleeping, I walked over to her. When I turned on the light, Angel made no movement whatsoever. She just sat there with her eyes wide open, like she was in some kind of a shock. My attention, however, was drawn to the small heart-shaped artefact she held in the palm of her hand. It was deep red, not silver like it was supposed to be.  
I took it gently from her fingers and placed it on the nightstand. Then I laid Angel back on her pillow, with the blanket over her body. I don't think she has ever noticed, because she seemed so far away. She only turned once; her face towards me. Her arms were wrapped tightly around the blanket and she looked so peaceful asleep. I had never actually seen a person sleep before, but Angel was beautiful. So innocent.  
I couldn't keep my eyes of off her. All kinds of thoughts went through my mind. Why was I even feeling affection for this girl?  
At least; that's what I think it was. I constantly had to remind myself not to let anybody in, not to feel love. People always get hurt when they start with that crap. Nobody, besides my mother, had stayed with me. After my father had left, I felt so much pain that I promised myself never to feel love again. Angel sure made it hard for me, with that sweet smile on her lips. For the first time I knew why she had been given that name. That night she really did looked like an Angel.

Very early in the morning, I quickly dressed myself to go downstairs. When I picked up my boots I saw Angel again, still lost in her dreams. A warm glow touched my heart, just like it had done that night. It was a strange feeling and I desperately wanted it to go away.  
"I...I can't love you", I whispered and ran out the room with tears in my eyes. Not that I cry much - I haven't cried in years - but I just couldn't stop the tears from coming, like they were forcing their way out.  
The bench standing near the Benbow, the one were we met for the first time, was still covered with dew. I leaned against a tree and stared at the sky. Endless thoughts floated through my mind. I felt so lost. I was so afraid to let Angel find her way into my heart, that I forcefully tried to block my emotions and feelings for her.  
"What are you doing?"  
I turned my head towards the door. I could have recognised that voice anywhere; it was Angel. She sure had taken me by surprise, but there she was; standing in the doorstep, wearing her blue pants and deep red shirt. I was speechless. How did she knew I was here? Although, the Benbow wasn't very big. She could have easily found her way through here.  
"You were pondering again, weren't you?", she asked, walking slowly towards me. I smiled. Angel always seemed to know my thoughts.  
"I was just thinking…"  
She laughed. "You are always thinking!"  
I stared into her eyes. It's hard to deny what you feel, especially when the girl is standing right in front of you. I remembered how I had always felt so alone, but with Angel around that feeling was completely gone.  
I sighed. "Everybody in my life seems to leave me", I said, with a sad undertone in my voice. I saw the expression on Angel's face change. It turned into serious. She opened my hands and laid her own in them. Her feet moved one step closer to me.  
"I will never leave you again", she replied, "I promise you that, here and now."  
My fears slowly faded away. My heart, that so strongly had rejected every kind word, every loving gesture, regained its will to open up. Still with lots of doubt and hesitation, but at least I finally dared to feel some love for her. Those words had been exactly what I needed.  
"We are both alone in this world…"  
Angel placed her finger gently on my lips. "No, we are not", she whispered, "We have each other." She put her hands on my shoulders so her face was even more near to mine. Our lips were so close that they could almost touch. My heart jumped over from excitement. I had never felt so much for anyone in my whole life. As if it was naturally, I let my arms go around her waist. We both looked into the others eyes, before we brought our lips together and kissed. I wished it could last forever. It was like the whole world disappeared and we were the only ones left. All my previous doubts were forgotten. It was just her and me, at this moment. Nobody could hurt us, because we were safe together, immortal. Both our hearts filled with warmth to feel so wanted and loved.  
When my lips were finally leaving hers and I was releasing her just one tiny bit, Angel immediately hugged me stronger, like she wanted to hold on to this moment forever.  
"Don't let go Jim, please don't let go."  
A smile came across my face. "I won't."  
Softly my arms embraced her again. I gently stroke with my hand over her hair. Together we watched the sun come out to start a new day.

My mother was so busy with breakfast that she didn't even noticed something about us when we walked in together. She only ordered us to make the tables ready for guests and so we did. Running around we held things like jam and biscuits high up in the air, while the other tried to grab it. People who came down to eat laughed at the sight of our little game. My mother wasn't so pleased with it, though. Eventually she send us away to my room and the guests took place at the breakfast table.  
I first ran to the kitchen to grab my book, before I followed Angel upstairs. She was sitting on her bed, with her legs crossed and her eyes buried in her notebook. I saw by the expression on her face that she was completely happy. I knew that expression all too well; it was the same as mine when I had my feet on my solar-surfer and made one trick after another. It was nice to see her like this, especially after all the difficult times she had been going through. I could tell that she missed her parents very much, even though me and my mother had been able to cheer her up.  
Angel put the notebook away and moved over, so I could sit next to her. She let her head rest against my chest and read the book to me I had taken from the kitchen. We could just spend hours on talking and looking at the pictures. Time flew by without us even realising it. Suddenly, we heard a noise coming from downstairs. It couldn't have been the guests; it was too late for that.  
I was surprised when all at once I felt Angel holding me tightly. I looked down to her face, which showed me horror. She had pure horror in her eyes. Boy, was she scared!  
"They're coming!", Angel cried, "They're coming for the artefact!"  
I immediately turned my head to the nightstand. It was still there, but it had recovered to its normal state: silver colour, non-glowing and cold. I feared Angel was right. And if she was, those creatures would do _anything_ to get it.


End file.
